Oct. 31, 2023

Happy Halloween and welcome to Week 10 of our journey together! 

In honor of Halloween, let’s talk about two scary things. 

First, let’s talk about final exams. These don’t need to be scary, but for many, they lurk in the future like some shadowy threats foreshadowed in the syllabus on the first day of classes. Here’s how we defeat these threats before they ever even show up on our doorstep in the final scenes of our drama; we take the time to prepare. There are five (only five!) full weeks of classes left until the end of our term. There are three more weeks after this one, then we have the short week with fall break. After that, there are only two more weeks. This is the time you have to work with and this is your most important resource.

How can you make the most of it to prepare yourself best for the coming threat? One potential strategy is to break the semester down into five equal pieces, maybe three weeks of content per piece. In each of the five weeks ahead, study, review, and revisit the material from one piece. By breaking it down into smaller pieces, and making the most of the time we have, you will be ready to own those exams like the pro that you are.

Whether you implement this plan, or one of your own device, the key is to put the time in starting sooner rather than later. There is no shortcut to a fear-free finale for this 16-week series called the fall 2023 semester. Put the time in. Be the hero.

OK, for the second thing, let’s talk about cyber security for a moment. Have you ever had to use two forms of identification to log into an online service? Maybe you have logged in using your password as well as a code that was texted to you. This is called Multi-Factor Authentication. 

UAF has already started rolling out this security enhancement to better protect your account and personal information from dangerous cyber threats. If you are a student employee, you already know what this is all about as you are already required to use MFA.

Starting today, Oct. 31, everyone using VPN or VDI from off-campus locations will use MFA through Duo. This includes students authorized to use VPN and VDI from off-campus.

By the end of the spring semester and before June 30, 2024, all students will be required to use MFA. If you are an early adopter, MFA is available to everyone today! For more information and details on how to self-enroll visit the Nanook Technology Services Multi-Factor page.

Things to do:

Have a great 10th week of classes, have a fantastic Halloween, and stay safe out there! 

Please share your thoughts with me on what we could be doing better: obguthrie@alaska.edu.

— Owen Guthrie, vice chancellor for student affairs and enrollment management